What is harmful hookah?

It often happens that when you rest in a company, at home or in a club, someone has an idea: “Let's smoke a hookah!”. Almost always, this idea is supported by the team. Why? What is so attractive in hookah smoking, is it legal, and most importantly, is it not harmful to health? In this article we will try to talk about what is harmful hookah.

What is a hookah

Hookah is a smoking device in which tobacco is placed in a special cup, tightly covered with foil, and a smoldering piece of charcoal is placed on top. It also provides long burning of tobacco. Tobacco smoke passes down through the tubes into a special flask where liquid is poured. As a rule, they use water, but some gourmets smoke hookah on milk or wine. This gives a special flavor to tobacco smoke. Tobacco itself, as a rule, is also bought with different tastes: peach, cherry, caramel and others. After passing through a flask of liquid, cooled smoke enters the mouthpiece, then - in our lungs.

Hookah against cigarettes

Disputes over the fact that it is more harmful - hookah or cigarettes, have not subsided for a long time.

Many hookah smokers claim that smoking a hookah is not only more pleasant than regular cigarettes, but also safer. This is explained by the fact that the smoke is filtered through the water, so the tar and other harmful substances remain in the water. In addition, there is no paper in tobacco, as in cigarettes, the burning of which is also accompanied by the release of harmful substances. Finally, tobacco is not in contact with open fire, but receives heat from the effects of embers, that is, it does not burn, but dries. However, research tells us that all of the above is nothing more than a myth.

In hookah tobacco, the nicotine content is 0.05%, which is 7 times more than in a cigarette. In addition, the smoke passing through the water contains more carbon monoxide than cigarette. And in one session, the hookah smoker receives a portion of nicotine equal to 20 cigarettes.

Often, after especially long sessions of hookah smoking, which can last for several hours, people felt dizzy, short of breath, difficulty breathing. Studies have shown that in the blood of such smokers the concentration of nicotine, lead, arsenic, carboxyhemoglobin is much higher than those who smoke cigarettes.It follows from this that those who smoke hookah are even more susceptible to diseases of the heart, blood vessels, risks of lung cancer, oral cavity, abnormalities during pregnancy and in the newborn, problems with breathing.

Another popular myth associated with hookah, says that smoking is not addictive. But doctors say that hookah smokers are also addicted to nicotine. Studies conducted in the US show that 40% of those who "dabbled" with a hookah later became smokers. Because the body, accustomed to nicotine, began to demand it in places where there was no hookah: at work, school, in the store, and they had to quench their thirst with regular cigarettes.

German scientists have proven that through the mouthpiece much more harmful compounds enter the body than in cigarettes containing the strongest tobacco, even in the absence of a filter. The amount of nicotine in the blood of such people is several times higher than that of people who smoke simple cigarettes. The lungs eventually lose their elasticity and the ability to filter smoke, removing toxic substances from it. In addition, through the mouthpiece, transmitted in a circle, you can pick up various diseases.